German government announces support for new TB treatments
The government of Germany has announced its support for the development of new treatments to combat tuberculosis (TB). Germany’s Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) has committed EUR 10 million over five years to TB Alliance, facilitated by the KfW development bank. This grant is part of a slate of support intended to spur product development to fight neglected diseases.
The investment from Germany will fund TB Alliance’s work to develop better, faster, and affordable TB drugs. This includes the development of two promising new shorter, all-oral drug regimens in late stages of development that have the potential to cure virtually all TB patients. Work supported will also include the discovery and development of further novel TB drugs to fight the growing threat of antimicrobial resistance (AMR).
“TB is the leading infectious disease killer in the world and is the single leading global cause of AMR. We are very appreciative of the support from the German government to fund new tools to fight this global killer,” said Dr. Mel Spigelman, President and CEO of TB Alliance. “This funding is urgently needed to support the advancement of promising new drugs and regimens now in the pipeline.”
The announcement of new funding for product development partnerships follows BMBF’s first funding program for PDPs (2011-2016). It represents a doubling of Germany’s initial investment to develop diagnostics, drugs, and preventative measures against diseases of poverty like TB.
Read the BMBF press release (in German)
Source: TB Alliance
